Long time Lurker, first time poster...

[Pulse]

I thought that was only the masterpiece version of that toy? Surely many people own G1 Megatron... thousands of children of the '80's for a start.

Yeah but in the 80's, things were more innocent. That was the era before events like "Port Arthur" & you can't blame the Fed Government for changing the gun rules & regulations.

[griffin]

Any 'replica weapon' in certain states is either illegal or has ownership restrictions (like in NSW). And even if it is okay to own one in your state (any of the TFs that turn into replica guns - Megatron (G1 and black recolour), MP Megatron, Browning), you could still get arrested for having it out in public, or on a flight (Federal jurisdiction).
If you are in a state that prohibits the ownership, keep it at home and it is best not to publically say that you have one, to prevent getting into any trouble later.

[GoktimusPrime]

Yeah but in the 80's, things were more innocent. That was the era before events like "Port Arthur" & you can't blame the Fed Government for changing the gun rules & regulations.

Not really. Replica gun toys have always been illegal. I remember only seeing the G1 Megatron toy being sold here for a few months in late 84 and early 85 before the product was recalled by Hasbro in 1985. My mum read about it in the newspaper and told me about it, and it was also hot gossip in the school yard. Growing up I only ever knew one kid who had a Megatron toy because he managed to buy it before the product recall. It seems that Hasbro had chosen the Microman Walther P38 UNCLE Gun Robo toy as Megatron without realising that it conflicted with toy laws - thus having their product soon recalled.

Think back to all the kids you knew who played with Transformers in the 1980s when you were a child - how many of them owned Optimus Prime, Soundwave, Starscream etc. compared to how many that owned Megatron. It was a really rare toy even by G1 standards. And no other Transformer toy ever released in a Hasbro market has ever transformed into a realistic looking gun.

[TheDirtyDigger]

I owned G1 Megatron as a kid. My dad and whole family were/are always been into guns and they were impressed. I was stoked when I got him in the box but a little miffed that he looked so ugly in bot mode. Wish I'd kept the box and inserts though.

[gamblor916]

My friend bought a G1 Megatron in the late 80s from Kmart. The box was torn and not in great shape but the toy was otherwise new.

[GoktimusPrime]

Okay, but my question was, how many kids (including yourself if relevant) did you know who were collecting Transformers in the 1980s had a Megatron compared to say Optimus Prime. Now granted that a heroic leader would be more popular than an evil leader, I personally found that there were way more kids who had an Optimus Prime compared to a Megatron... as I said, I only knew the one kid at my school who had a Megatron whereas every 2nd kid owned Optimus Prime.

[TheDirtyDigger]

Not many kids I knew collected Tf's (they just weren't cool enough). Of say 6 or 7 that used to collect none had Optimus. Grimlock was probably the coolest Tf amongst our clique imo.

As for

Replica gun toys have always been illegal.

I do remember that they were illegal but somehow my brother who is eight years younger than me had an arsenal of them purchased by my parents including battery operated Uzi's that made realistic sounds and smoked and an M16. My dad even made a weapons rack for him to display/store them all on.


PS Sorry dr.j for hijacking your thread.

[d*r*j*]

With your replica Megatrons?

Okay... so G1 Megatron is illegal... how come there are no police raids on the collectable shops on chapel street? Come on... surely those prices are a hanging offence for a start.

A week or two ago I was in queensland and one of the news items was that the black market had managed to steal all the mangoes or something like that... was very strange. Can any members from queensland shed any light on this story? were the mangoes recovered?

[dirge]

Okay... so G1 Megatron is illegal... how come there are no police raids on the collectable shops on chapel street? Come on... surely those prices are a hanging offence for a start.

I guess noone has brought them to Victoria Police's attention?

[GoktimusPrime]

d*r*j: there are many known cases of Australian Customs having seized Megatron toys and detained them scheduled for termination. It primarily happened with Masterpiece Megatron, but G1 Megatron also falls under the same category and we know that Australian Customs are now actively looking for Megatron toys.

how come there are no police raids on the collectable shops on chapel street? Come on... surely those prices are a hanging offence for a start.

Perhaps the store was able to legally import the figure - again, I'm not familiar with Victorian laws regarding Megatron. I think a NSW store could import one if they had a Megatron Transformer replica firearms permit - and part of owning that permit means that the toy would have to be displayed in a locked unit in secured premises, e.g.: if it's on the ground level then windows must have grill/bars otherwise it can be displayed on an above-ground floor. Furthermore I think that they're supposed to be selling the toy to permit holders, but I'm not entirely sure about that. If you think the store is infringing the law then feel free to report them to the police and let them sort it out.